The effect on the performance of early lactation cows when supplying them with sodium monensin was evaluated, whose power in their overall diet in the trough, was composed of 81.4% of corn silage and 18.6% of concentrate in which use was made of a higher proportion of corn silage to concentrate. Fourteen multiparous 7/8 Dutch cows were used, approximately 20±10 days post-labor, with the average weight of 22±0.5kg cow-1 day-1 of lactation, in randomized blocks, adopting the scheme of subdivided portions in time and repetitive measurement model. The treatments in portions were differentiated by the presence (200mg.animal-1day-1) or absence of monensin in the food and, in the sub-portions, different evaluation periods were used. The animals were fed with their total diet in the feeder composed of 81.4% of corn silage and 18.6% of concentrate. No difference was found in the consumption of diet dry matter, alimentary conversion, in natural and corrected production of milk and live weight in the daily averages of each period. However, the production of total solids was superior for treatments with ionophore, signalizing that the administration of sodium monensin in early lactation cows changes the milk production performance.
consumption; weight gain; early lactation; ionophore; milk production